{"title":"VITELLIUS AND THE SHIELD OF MINERVA","authors":"S. Connolly","doi":"10.1017/S0017383522000213","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"In 69 ce, the emperor Vitellius presented to dinner guests his ‘Shield of Minerva’, a platter filled with pike livers, pheasant and peacock brains, flamingo tongues, and lamprey milt. Just as Vitellius’ passion for food has been distorted into gluttony, so the Shield of Minerva has been misrepresented as a culinary abomination and the worst of the emperor's excesses. Modern scholarly reception of the Shield owes much to hostile ancient sources, but is also influenced by some modern culinary preferences. Critical reading of our sources reveals the dish as a mix of ingredients carefully chosen for their gustatory and visual appeal and for their political and military symbolism. Vitellius’ association of the platter with Minerva evokes her status not only as a martial deity, but also as a goddess of craft. The Shield of Minerva is revealed to be an intellectual exercise, not a symbol of gluttonous self-indulgence.","PeriodicalId":44977,"journal":{"name":"GREECE & ROME","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1000,"publicationDate":"2023-03-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"GREECE & ROME","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1017/S0017383522000213","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"CLASSICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
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Abstract
In 69 ce, the emperor Vitellius presented to dinner guests his ‘Shield of Minerva’, a platter filled with pike livers, pheasant and peacock brains, flamingo tongues, and lamprey milt. Just as Vitellius’ passion for food has been distorted into gluttony, so the Shield of Minerva has been misrepresented as a culinary abomination and the worst of the emperor's excesses. Modern scholarly reception of the Shield owes much to hostile ancient sources, but is also influenced by some modern culinary preferences. Critical reading of our sources reveals the dish as a mix of ingredients carefully chosen for their gustatory and visual appeal and for their political and military symbolism. Vitellius’ association of the platter with Minerva evokes her status not only as a martial deity, but also as a goddess of craft. The Shield of Minerva is revealed to be an intellectual exercise, not a symbol of gluttonous self-indulgence.
期刊介绍：
Published with the wider audience in mind, Greece & Rome features informative and lucid articles on ancient history, art, archaeology, religion, philosophy, and the classical tradition. Although its content is of interest to professional scholars, undergraduates and general readers who wish to be kept informed of what scholars are currently thinking will find it engaging and accessible. All Greek and Latin quotations are translated. A subscription to Greece & Rome includes a supplement of New Surveys in the Classics. These supplements have covered a broad range of topics, from key figures like Homer and Virgil, to subjects such as Greek tragedy, thought and science, women, slavery, and Roman religion. The 2007 New Survey will be Comedy by Nick Lowe.
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